EVENING SNAPSHOT - Americas Markets Summary

03 March 2011 23:09  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--Here is Thursday’s end of day Americas oil and chemical market summary from ICIS.

CRUDE: Apr WTI: $101.91/bbl, down 32 cents; Apr Brent: $114.79/bbl, down $1.56
NYMEX WTI crude futures retreated from recent lofty highs on a downside correction to overbought conditions. The market was keeping an eye on various proposals to mediate in the Libyan crisis.

RBOB: Apr: $3.0262/gal, down 0.33 cents
Reformulated gasoline blendstock for oxygenate blending (RBOB) was choppy as initial hopes of a Libya peace agreement, drawn up by Venezuela, pushed energy prices lower. But as the day went on, Libya appeared less likely to commit to the agreement and losses were pared.

NATURAL GAS: Apr: $3.778/MMBtu, down 4.0 cents
After a morning of erratic trading in response to the government’s announcement of a narrow storage draw last week, the afternoon brought a lull in activity as the NYMEX front month remained under $3.80/MMBtu and finished down for a third straight session.

ETHANE: down at 66.75-68.50 cents/gal
Mont Belvieu ethane continued to move lower after seeing a price spike at the end of February from short-covering. There has been lower demand for ethane from the chemical industry.

AROMATICS: benzene flat at $4.20-4.25/gal
Benzene activity was thin on Thursday afternoon. Spot prices were unchanged from the previous day.

OLEFINS: ethylene down at 52.00-53.50 cents/lb
US March ethylene was heard traded on the Equistar pipeline at 53.50-53.75 cents/lb, at the low end of a 53.5-55.0 cent/lb bid/offer range heard earlier in the day. Propylene contracts remained unsettled, with sellers concerned about rising refinery-grade propylene (RGP) prices, sources said.

For more pricing intelligence please visit www.icispricing.com.

By: Staff Reporter
+44 20 8652 3214

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